Windows 8.1 Tip: Master Auto-Snap

One of the more interesting new features in Windows 8.1 is what I call Auto-Snap, the ability of certain actions in this OS to automatically enable Snap and place two Metro apps side-by-side. For example, when you open a picture-based email attachment in the Mail app, it opens side-by-side with Mail in the Photos app. Some people don't like this behavior, but this simple tip will ease a bit of the pain.

Thanks to Cliff for tipping me off to this functionality.

(Metro) Snap debuted in Windows 8 as a way to run two apps side-by-side. But in that initial release of OS, Snap was very limited. It could only be triggered manually by the user, and yet was almost impossible to discover. And the snapped area was very small, and hard-coded to a specific pixel width, making side-by-side app usage almost pointless.

In Windows 8.1, Snap has been improved in many ways and is now far more usable. Auto-Snap is just one of those improvements: It is triggered when one app needs to open a document or other file in another app. So instead of opening the new app full-screen as before—triggering confusion on the user's part, since many people had no idea how to get back to the original app—Auto Snap opens the new app side-by-side with the original app.

You can see this effect most clearly in the Mail app, though this isn't the only example. When you open an attachment in Mail, the attachment opens in a new app alongside Mail. For example, here's a picture attachment opening in the Photos app.

It's worth mentioning, incidentally, that Auto-Snap is pretty intelligent, too. That picture attachment opens in such a way that the Photos app takes up most of the screen because a picture is visual and Microsoft understands that it requires more of the available screen real estate. But if you open a document or web URL, the app that opens those attachment types will open in a 50/50 split with Mail so you can more easily read both side-by-side.

Of course, you may want to view the second app full-screen, and once you've dealt with that second app, you probably want to then return to email (or whatever app you were originally using).

With a touch-based system, this is easy and works as before: You can simply drag the Snap border to a screen edge in either case. (Though of you hide the first app by displaying the second one full screen, you then need to know how to redisplay that first app, which is another issue.)

With the mouse, you can use Auto-Snap. You may already know that if you move the mouse cursor to the top of the screen in Windows 8/8.1, the cursor changes into what I call the "hamburger helper" cursor, shown here:

Note: Technically, this cursor is called the Link Select pointer.

This indicates that you can now drag the currently displayed app, to move it manually into a snapped position or to exit the app. But in Windows 8.1, you can also double-click when the cursor is in this mode. Using the previous example with the picture snapped next to Mail, doing so in the Photos app maximizes that app so that the picture is now full-screen:

But if you double-click on the hamburger helper cursor again—again, at the top of the screen—the Mail app will then reappear, full-screen. You can double-click in this way at the top of any Metro app to toggle the display of Snap.

So the next time Windows 8.1 triggers Auto-Snap, don't despair. Just remember that you can double-click to toggle the display the way you prefer.

Discuss this Article 14

There are a lot of great features in Windows 8/Metro... the problem is that most owners of Windows 8 aren't using them (yet) because they're using it on non-touch desktops & laptops.

Microsoft could've done Metro a world of good by allowing us to pin Metro apps to the desktop taskbar. These pinned-to-the-desktop Metro apps would also have "jump lists" in that... say you're working in Word but want to quickly check the weather. Instead of going all the way back to the Start Screen... you could simply move the cursor over the pinned Metro app... and voila... a jump list with your local weather pops up. It could work the same way for pinned Twitter, Facebook, Finance apps, etc.

I mean, I'm open to using the Xbox app... but I don't really need it in a Snap view when I'm working in Word. I just need it to be pinned to the desktop taskbar. Since it doesn't, I use Zune or WMP instead.

I just think Microsoft could've helped consumers explore Metro a lot more by making it more accessible from the desktop. Instead, they tried to make the desktop the "phantom zone" of Windows 8... but instead, Metro has become the "dead zone" for many users. It's a shame.

mmm... don't think I'd like that kind of behaviour. Thinking about how it's always worked: if you click a link on Monitor A in Win7, it opens on Monitor A. In Win8, just drag the second app (using the "hamburger helper" - I like that one, Paul!) over onto Monitor B. Actually, I really like the way Win8 handles dual monitors now - it's surprisingly flexible with few, if any, limitations as to how you can arrange any combo of Metro apps and/or desktop apps, including the desktop itself.

Sometimes when the snap pops up, it's in the middle of the screen asking whether you'd like it left or right. I'd actually like the option of full screen (but still with the left/right options - Maybe you move the mouse to the top of the monitor). They could extend it where you shift to the other monitor and click and it does it full screen there. Or even a Left/Right/Top (for full screen) and even a Bottom (for don't bother). Maybe that's too complex. I find the 'Well, which one do you want?' movements to be quite fluid and they'd work equally well with mouse or touch.
Great tip about double-click to go Maximum.

If you want the app to be full screen instead of snapping to the left or right, drag the launch preview window up to the top and it will open in full screen instead of to the left or right. In the case of a multiple monitor setup you can also drag the launch preview window to another monitor and open it there.

To me this is the most important feature of 8.1 and shows the biggest look into the future for the Metro/Modern design for productivity scenarios. I can imagine an application such as a CRM where it would launch a document related to a task on the right while the application stays open on the left.

Or you can snap two instances within the same application like Excel so that you could compare, copy and paste as needed between two spreadsheets. Write an email and add an attachment that opens the Metro File Explorer or Sky Drive on the right. Drag and drop any files you would like to include (or make the file shareable if it is in Sky Drive). There are so many possibilities now that this is much more flexible.

You can also use Winkey and Arrows on the keyboard. I like that the best. Just shows how aged window management on the desktop can feel even on a 20" screen (my opinion). But honestly, the arrow-keys are awesome. If the desktop is active they'll move around the windows within. Very well done.

Good tip, I didn't know the arrow key usage worked this way. Is there any way to keyboard switch between the two windows in this state? Neither alt-tab not win-tab do the trick because both windows are already on screen.

Actually, using a touch based system on a 27 inch desktop monitor is ludicrous....you expect me to sit and wave my arms around over a 2 ft distance raised in the air....or move a mouse 3 inches to do the same thing and not lift my arms at all....silly.

Perhaps on a 12 inch tablet...fine. Not going to be sitting here punching and waving 2 feet in all directions to do something that can be done with keyboard press or mouse wiggle.

I've been using the 8.1 Preview and 8.1 RTM from TechNet now and I can't stand the new behavior. Is there a way to disable it?

There should be pre-defined snap areas for 1/3, 1/4 and 1/2. This new behavior causes apps to decide to display different views based on arbitrary one pixel differences when you resize them. For example, with Xbox Music, where's the cutoff between the simple view and the full view? Exactly. That's not simple at all. Having been using the Preview since it became available, I have to say I dislike this change more than anything else in 8.1.

Secondly, why can't I keep an app running in snap view while I open a new one from the Start screen? (Read: why can't I split the view between the Start screen and some app?) Every time I go to split Xbox Video with another app, it pauses the video playback when I jump back to the Start screen instead of playing in the background. That's annoying.

Finally, I don't like the Mail app automatically snapping IE side-by-side when I'm viewing a URL from an email. I just want it to open IE full-screen like it did in 8.0. I really hope there's an option to revert back to the old behavior.

Aside from the performance improvements, 8.1 is really looking like a regression in terms of the UI functionality.

Regarding auto snap in Windows 8.1, from what I can see, the "intelligent" snapping (50/50, 40/60, etc,..) only works if the default programs are "modern". For instance: if IE11 desktop is set as default, instead of "modern" IE11, than, a link from the mail app, won't open in a 50/50 split, but in IE11 desktop full screen, fully replacing the mail app. Am I correct?

The snap is awkward because it opens up tabs. Try this: send yourself two different you tube video links and go to mail to open them. Click on link #1, and a snap window appears and plays the video (as expected), use the "hamburger helper" gesture to close the right streaming video. Now go to your second link with a different video and click....The first video is still playing. The only way around this seems to use the hamburger helper to drag down and hold the snap window until it flips. Alternatively, you can right click on the metro explorer that snaps and close the tab (but that is double work for someone just viewing links in email) Anyone else?

I am using Windows 8.1 but am having a difficult time figuring out which windows "qualify" for split screen use. It seems that all the applications on my task bar can only be seen on one half of the screen and anything else on the other half. For instance, if I have Outlook, Quickbooks Exel or anything on my taskbar open and want to view them side by side I can't figure out how to get the other one to the other half of the screen as they are not shown in the menu bar on the left as a recently used "app". What am I doing wrong?